Game Development Vocab

Front

Games created by mid-size or major publishers

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AAA (Triple A)

Front

In-game character or object using AI to interact with its environment.

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Agent:

Front

Artificial intelligence: an in-game entity reliant on code, not human input. NPCs are common AI.

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AI

Front

Game version with major features and assets, circulated internally for quality testing.

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Alpha

Front

Shorthand for anything in a video game – characters, objects, sounds, maps, etc.

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Assets

Front

Preprocessing method for game assets to ensure optimal loading and performance without slowing gameplay.

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Baking

Front

Creating a stable and predictable gaming experience by ensuring weapons and armor are balanced, avoiding excessive power differences or overly difficult levels. Sometimes, imbalance is intentional.

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Balance

Front

A game version with all major features, no major bugs, and on the way to code release. Limited public beta releases may occur for feedback.

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Beta

Front

Development issue making a game unenjoyable or unplayable.

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Bug

Front

Game dev term for a game's version, also called a release.

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Build